This invention has to do with axle assemblies and, more particularly, is concerned with high performance axle assemblies suited to automobiles intended for racing.
The rear wheels of an automobile are driven by axles which couple the wheels to the propeller shaft through a differential. In so doing, the axle shaft is subjected to tremendous torsional loads as one end is rotated by the differential gearing while the other end is loaded with a wheel of great relative diameter. Under rapid acceleration such as is desired in drag racing, axles having insufficient resistance to torsional (or twisting) stress are subject to catastrophic failure.
The axle typically is provided with a wheel mounting flange which serves to connect the wheel to the axle. In rotating the wheel tends to wobble, subjecting the flange to great bending stresses as the flange rocks about its axle mounting. Suitable flange alloys are available but these are relatively inadequate for axle use, in terms of torsional stress resistance.